Time with Ty

Lately I have had the opportunity to spend time with Tyler.

There was the Spring Fling where the moms come to school for about 3 hours and do activities with their kids. This was new to me and I thought it was fun!
While we waited in the hall for the kids to come out and invite us in we looked at the pictures of us they had drawn. Tyler was a little disappointed I had recently cut my hair because he had drawn me with it long, and there was a cute little note about why he liked me and he said some really nice things! I noticed a lot of the other kids wrote that their moms were good cooks, that was missing from Tyler's... I wonder what that means...
We sat at their desks did some activities in the class, next we planted flowers to beautify the school, and then we played some games. It was pretty cold and windy and when we played the frisbee toss game I beaned the kid next to Tyler a couple times on the head. The kid on the other side of Ty fared better, he only got hit in the shins. I'm blaming it on the wind.
We ate lunch in the classroom (again the winds fault) and went to recess with them. It was a lot of fun to spend time with Tyler in his class and to see the kids I always hear about.
I was excited to be picked out of the hat to go with Tyler's class to the zoo. We had a fun little group who seemed to have a great time. I was surprised to see the Ghost of the Bayou was still there, I thought it was one of those temporary exhibits. Speaking of ghosts, I hope I didn't creep anyone out with the faceless boy. I was trying to get a picture with just Ty looking at me, but ghost kid turned around too fast. By the way... what is the rule about posting pictures of other people?

And finally- Today is Tyler's 7th birthday.

Happy Birthday to You!!!

You are so thoughtful and tender-hearted.
You are also thankful, a great helper, and fun!
We love you so much!!!

I hope you get your wish!

Differences

My sister-in-law just had beautiful baby girl #3.

My friend just had sweet baby boy #4.

Another friend, who already has one of each, is about to find out if she is having girl #2 or boy #2.
(You already know don't you. Tell me.)


As I see it this is one of the biggest differences for me between boys and girls.

BOYS

Before


After



GIRLS

Before


After


Girls are so much work.

We have mastered the single clip to hold back a little hair. Occasionally I do something that requires a little more effort. Most of the time I am clueless. I've seen the little girls at church and the school and other places with their perfect hair done by their mom. I don't seem to be one of those moms. Where do you learn that? Was I supposed to practice on my dolls when I was a child.
Is that what dolls are for?

Maybe I'll just get Eliza a hat.

Farm life

Last weekend we went up to the farm for the annual springtime cattle branding and de-horning. This has been going on for years and years, but this time it was documented with pictures.

If you are at all squeamish, don't scroll down.

After the cows are rounded up they are sent into the chute one at at time.

This one says "Good Luck!"

"What do you mean Good Luck?"

The brand quickly does it's work. Clay got to help this year.

And then it's over. "Next!"

Sometimes others come to watch. Some turn away so they can't see.
Maybe they remember.

"I'm going to count to three and then it will be all over."
It's just like pulling out a tooth.

One...





Two...





Ok, the next picture is the one you may want to scroll past quickly.





Three!





Did you scroll or are you still looking?






A little blood and then a gauze bandage. I told you it's like pulling teeth... but I must say I've already lost all the teeth I'm going to and I'm sure glad I don't have to worry about horns!

The kids climb a tree. Some are just set in the tree for the sake of a picture.

We'll be back for you next month!

(The cow opinions expressed in this post were not necessarily those of the actual cows)

Hawaii- part 3

Alright, I figured it was way past the time of posting vacation pictures... but you get to see the rest anyway. I'm warning you, this is long. It should have been split in two parts like the seventh Harry Potter movie will be. I promise it's not that long.

We decided one of the "have to"s of this trip was to go to the swap meet at Aloha Stadium. So many people have said "go there!", and we weren't disappointed. We got there early and were amazed to see all the shops encircling the entire stadium. About every 5th shop sold t-shirts (4 for $11) and there was just about anything you could want- jewelry, nick-nacks, clothes, knock-off bags, food, etc. A great place to buy souvenirs. Just remember to bring your poncho in case you go on a day like we did. The shop owners said they knew we were tourists because no local would come on a day like this, it was their version of a snow day. Having left the beginning of the crazy storm that delivered record levels of snow while we were gone, we continued circling the stadium in our shorts and sandals knowing how much worse it could be.


Another "have to" was to hike Diamond Head. Before planing this trip I thought you get to hike up the outside of the crater and when you get to the top you are rewarded with a spectacular view of the inside of the crater. I really don't know what I thought was in there, but in the planning I discovered you actually go through a tunnel, park in the bottom of the crater, and hike all the way up so you can look out were you just came from. And for those of you who have never seen the inside of a crater... here you go.

I took the above picture as we were coming in for a landing. The little gray speck in the center is where you park, and from there you are on foot. Below is part of the trail, also known as the "99 steep steps" part of the trail because, you guessed it, there were 99 steep steps. There was another section of stairs, but it only had 74.

There was also a set of spiral stairs and 2 tunnels, but they are lit so you no longer need to bring flashlights for that part of it. We were trying to see the sunrise so we did use the flashlights for the first part of the trail. If you got there on time you might need them for the whole hike up (more on that later).

When we finished hiking the 0.7 miles and had climbed the 560 feet over uneven and steep terrain, we were rewarded with this wonderful view of the sunrise! I promise the sun is in those clouds somewhere. Actually we were glad those clouds were there on the way back down. It was a fun hike, something I would definitely do again.

We had a bit of an "Amazing Race" moment on our way to Diamond Head. We wanted to get there right when the park opened so we could hike fast and see the sunrise from the top. Having consulted a map before we left the hotel I knew exactly how to get there. We got off the correct freeway exit and that's when the roads looked different then they do on the map, you know, there were buildings. Suddenly one wrong turn turned into two and we were lost somewhere in the picture below (remember it is also dark). So, like the willing-to-accept-help-from-strangers women that we were, we stopped for directions. The locals buying goods at 5:50 am (they looked like they had been up all night) said to take this street to that street, "I think". We went "that" direction to the next gas station where I asked the older (sober) man in line how to get to Diamond Head. He said he was heading that way and would lead us there. We traveled through several residential neighborhoods discussing how this man could be taking us home for all we knew, when wah-la! there was the entrance. He pulled over and after thanking him profusely we were back on track.

I figured we couldn't go to Hawaii without seeing Pearl Harbor. We had the opportunity to visit on Sunday and it had such a reverent and reflective atmosphere. Even now I can feel the awe of what the monument stands for. You can see the Arizona Memorial on the right and the Battleship Missouri on the left.

I had heard it can be hard to get tickets to get in (they are free, you just have to go as a group to get them) but the man leading our group figured a lot of people were watching the Super Bowl, so we got right in.I thought it was interesting you can see the oil in the water that still comes up from the Arizona. It's is amazing to me to think this little bit of metal showing above the water is just a small portion of a large ship.
This replica put into perspective how little we are seeing of what is down there. I would go into the museum after going on the tour- the tour (and especially the movie before it) gives you a better understanding of what you're looking at. Don't miss this site!

For meals we would consult the guide book to see what sounded good and how it was rated. Dixie Grill was given an "Ono" (delicious) so we stopped in. They were celebrating Mardi Gras and watching the Super Bowl- two parties in one! And the the barbeque was delicious.

We took the H-3 over the Ko'olau mountain range to the windward (east) side of the island and then we drove up the coast to Hale'iwa. It was a very scenic drive, I enjoyed it so I have no pictures. We stopped in at Matsumoto's for a shaved ice which I think is pretty much a destination in itself.

There was ice cream under the shaved ice! Does anyone know of a local place that does that? Of course it wouldn't be the same! When I make if back to Hawaii I will go there and get another shaved ice, it was that good!!

Monday it was time to say good by and check-out, and not a moment to soon. Apparently, every year the Sunday after the Super Bowl is the Pro-Bowl and it was being played at Aloha Stadium. Our hotel was hosting the players and coaches and their families and had been getting ready for it. Our quiet little oasis was about to become one of the busiest (and most tightly secured buildings- the guards were beginning to stop people at the front gate) on the island. So, stay there if you will, but don't go the week after the Super Bowl.

I've heard it said that: When in Rome you do as the Romans do. Well, when in Waikiki you... eat at Duke's of course!

Here's the King of Surf himself... well, you know what I mean.

We spent time walking around Waikiki and the International Market Place where we shopped till we dropped, pretty much literally.

The last morning at the hotel I spent some time here in the hammock, watching the sun rise over the lagoon and thinking about how much fun this trip had been. And like everyone I've ever talked to who's been to Hawaii, I would go back in a heartbeat.

Anyone have room in their suitcase?

By the way, if you are in the market for a guidebook, this is the best! It's the one the locals use!